Pak govt told to respond to Lakhvi’s plea

A Pakistani anti-terror court conducting the trial of seven suspects charged with planning and facilitating the Mumbai attacks on Tuesday asked the government to respond to LeT commander Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi’s bail plea by July 17.

A Pakistani anti-terror court conducting the trial of seven suspects charged with planning and facilitating the Mumbai attacks on Tuesday asked the government to respond to LeT commander Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi’s bail plea by July 17.

Lakhvi, the operations chief of the banned Lashker-e-Tayyeba (LeT), had filed an application for bail during the last hearing of the Mumbai attacks case on July 10.

Anti-Terrorism Court Judge Malik Muhammad Akram Awan directed the government to file its response to Lakhvi’s application by July 17, when the court will take up the matter again.

Lakhvi’s lawyer Khwaja Sultan told PTI that his client has sought bail due to the inordinate delay in the trial.

He contended that no solid evidence had been presented against Lakhvi in the 19 months that he had been in custody.

In recent weeks, proceedings have been stalled by the prosecution’s efforts to gain access to Ajmal Kasab, a Pakistani national sentenced to death by an Indian court for his role in the Mumbai attacks, and Fahim Ansari, an Indian who was acquitted.